Hand of the Maiden
by DapperDalton
Summary: It doesn't take much to spark a chain reaction. One gesture of kindness, one gesture of appreciation, and one case of Count Mott showing up just a little early is all it takes for things to go awry. Gandalfr is the Hand of God, but Louise is a maiden, not a god. Siesta, fits the bill for what the hand of a maiden should be.
1. Chapter 1 - Accidental Rescue

So, I'm throwing my hat into this ring. There's a little context surrounding my reasoning to write this, but it's quite simple. A couple weeks ago I found a story called Maid of Honor, written by an author named escalus01. It was well written, and generally a good story, but there was an issue.

The issue is that the author appears to have abandoned the website and vanished, as its been over a year since the last update to it. I thought that a shame, since the concept was solid. So I've decided to take up the concept for a myself, and put out a first chapter to test the waters a bit. So… here's the first chapter of 'Hand of the Maiden'.

* * *

Sitting at her desk, surrounded by the dim darkness of her room, Louise Françoise Le Blanc de La Vallière let out a loud groan and dropped her head onto the hardwood. Scattered across its surface were all the materials she could find on transmutation. Several books from the library, a couple essays, and her own notes. None of it mattered.

Scrunching her eyes closed, she took a few deep breaths to calm herself and drive away the tears that had begun to form at the corners of her eyes. She couldn't cry, even if she was in private. That'd be admitting that she was weak, and that wasn't something she could ever do. She was a Valliere dammit! Picking her head up, she stared at the papers, frustration etching its way across her features.

It had taken most of the day to clean up after the explosion during the lesson. She really should have known better than to have tried, even though it was a simple transmutation. Lead to brass, a dot level spell. It went like all the other attempts at magic, blowing up in her face. Miss Chevreuse had been knocked out by the blast, and she had even missed dinner because of it. At the least, she had managed to run into a maid, so at least she her dinner was just gonna be late.

A quiet series of knocks came from the door, and Louise called out to simply come in. Speak of the devil, or would right on cue work better? Getting up and walking over towards the table, she eyed the maid as she came in. Right on cue worked better, there was no way that girl could be the devil, even if she looked a little foreign. She looked harmless, though maybe a bit exotic with that black hair and slight angle to her eyes.

Realizing that she had actually bothered to really look at a maid for the first time, she crossed her arms and turned to look at her chair. The maid sat down the covered platter she had brought on the table and quickly moved to pull the chair out. Louise sat down and let herself be pushed into the seat, the maid shifting the plate over to rest in front of her and pulling the cover up and off. A plume of steam followed it, revealing a bowl of beef stew and a whole loaf of bread. Placing the cover off to the side, the maid placed her hands in front of herself and nervously twitched. "I-I'm sorry that it is not the same as what is usually served at dinner. It was the best that could be done on short notice. W-Would you like me to bring you some wine?"

"No, this shall be adequate. And aren't servants only supposed to speak when spoken to?" Louise glanced up at the maid, watching her blush lightly in embarrassment and freeze . It was amusing enough to bring a light smirk to her face, but it fell quickly. A light sigh escaped her nose and she turned to the food and grabbed the bread, tearing a hunk off before dipping it into the stew and starting to eat.

"E-Excuse me, Miss Valliere… W-Would you like me to draw you a bath? Y-You're a bit dirty, and… the uniform might stain if not cleaned soon." The maid twitched even more, rubbing her wrist and looking at her feet as she spoke. Louise glanced down at herself, realising that in all of her frustrated thoughts, she hadn't even noticed how dirty she was from the cleaning. She grumbled to herself and the maid froze again, watching as she reached down and picked a splinter from the hem of her skirt.

"Yes… Go and get the bath ready. You can do the rest of my laundry while you're at it. Before you leave though, go and pull my chemise out along with an extra cloak. I want them ready for when I get out of the bath." The smirk came back as Louise watched the maid quickly nod and move over to the wardrobe, pulling the folded garment out and tucking it lightly against her chest as she moved to the door to the bath.

"Maid, tell me your name." The command came out just as she opened the door, causing her to turn and look back. Louise had an expression of mild curiosity on her face, looking the maid over once more. She'd shown some initiative, even after the comment meant to silence her. Watching her nervously go about her duties was surprisingly amusing, and had distracted her from her frustrations.

"Siesta de Tarbes, Miss Valliere." Pressing the chamise against her chest a little tighter, she fidgeted under Louise's look. Smirking again, Louise nodded and waved at her away, turning her attention fully back to the food. She noted the door shutting, and let the smirk fade as she let her manners go and started devouring the food. All the cleaning had made her starving, and even if it wasn't as fancy as usual, it was food.

She finished off the loaf of bread and started shoveling the stew into her mouth, not even noticing as she got some onto her clothes and face. Dropping the spoon, she picked the bowl up by its entirety and brought it to her lips, drinking down the last scraps. A sigh of contentment escaped her lips and she dropped it back onto the plate, leaning back against her chair. Her thoughts went back to the failure earlier and she grit her teeth, tightening her fists against her legs.

Siesta slipped back into the room, a small bit of steam slipping through the door before she could close it behind her. Louise didn't notice, caught up in her own thoughts as she sat there. She brought one fist up and slammed it into the the table, causing the silverware to rattle and Siesta to let out a small squeak in fright. Louise whipped her head around, staring at her as she stared back, frozen on the spot with an anxious expression. They stayed like that for a moment, before Louise grumbled and stood up, starting to get out of the dirtied clothes. "I assume the bath's ready?"

Looking like a woodpecker, Siesta nodded, her hair bouncing along for the ride. Another smirk sprouted on Louise face, something about the girls nervous air just amused her. Maybe it was just good to see someone else look so out of place, or unsure of what to do. Pushing the thought aside, she finally slipped off the last of the clothes, dropping it into a small pile in her chair. She walked past Siesta, who had vision very firmly placed between her feet, and put her hand on the door. Stopping, she threw a comment over her shoulder before continuing on. "Good work, Siesta."

As the door shut behind her, Siesta was left standing in the room alone. It took a few seconds for the nervousness to die down, and the comment to really register in her head. She glanced over at the door to the bath, a small smile coming across her face. Humming, she went over to the hamper that contained the rest of the girls dirty clothes, dumping the newest bunch on the top. Carrying it all out of the room, she closed the door quietly behind herself, leaving Louise to her thoughts.

* * *

Louise quickly formed an odd companionship with Siesta, or as close to one as a noble could with a commoner. Siesta would personally handle the duties related to Louise, and Louise would request her by name for whenever she needed something from the staff. Siesta started relaxing a little in Louise presence, though the younger girl never let her get too relaxed. Seeing her nervous was just too amusing, and provided a nice distraction for most things.

What came two weeks after their initial meeting however, was not 'most things', and it was driving Louise crazy with anxiety. The Springtime Familiar Summoning Ritual was her last chance to prove herself, if she failed, it would mean expulsion. She couldn't let that happen, she couldn't fail now. So she studied the ritual, practicing drawing out miniature summoning circles and practicing the chant over and over again to get it perfect. Then practicing it more to make extra sure she could do it again. It distracted her to the point that she didn't notice that it was a different maid who came and got her dirty laundry while she got ready for bed.

Morning came far too quickly for Louise after she managed to fall asleep. The sunlight streaming through the window seemed to burn its way through her eyelids, making her turn over and plant her face into the pillow with a groan. It barely registered in her head as someone opened the door and stepped in, making her look up blearily at the maid who stood there with the hamper of clothes in her hands. Blinking a few more times and rubbing her eyes, she squinted at the maid. "...You're not Siesta."

The maid fidgeted under the squint, glancing down sheepishly at the clothes. She walked over to the wardrobe and opened it up, starting to place the folded clothing in the correct spot. Louise raised an eyebrow, her tired mind trying to work out why the maid had seemingly ignored her. It took her by surprise as she heard the maid's quiet voice speak up while she worked. "Siesta is no longer at the academy."

For some reason, those words caused her to wake up quickly. She stared at the made incredulously for a second, before getting up and stomping over to her. Putting a hand on the maid's shoulder, she forced her to turn around, her anger dying slightly as she noticed the sad expression on her face as she stared down at the ground. "What do you mean she's no longer at the academy?"

"H-Her contract was bought out." The maid stuttered quietly, leaning back into the wardrobe in an attempt to put some distance between the two of them. Louise let go of her shoulder and sighed, stepping back and crossing her arms. She was annoyed, but she was a noble and she had to act like one.

"Who bought out her contract?" Upon hearing the question, the maid froze, keeping her eyes firmly planted onto the clothes in the hamper. Louise was starting to get annoyed, it was amusing when Siesta acted nervous but this was just getting on her nerves.

"C-Count Mott, Miss Valliere." She stared at the maid, the words taking a few moments to register in her head. Count Mot… out of anyone who could have bought her contract, it had to be Count Mott with his 'appetites'. She groaned, reaching up and rubbing her forehead. There was nothing she could do, but damn if this wasn't going to distract her.

Grabbing a pair of clean clothes, Louise quickly changed into her uniform and went about her morning routine. She was thankful the maid got done quickly, the less people who saw her this frustrated the better. If the summoning ritual was to go well… she'd have to push Siesta out of her mind. She was good company, but she was a maid and a commoner, she shouldn't have been enjoying her company anyway.

As she finished she was glad to slip out of the room, it seemed way too lonely in that moment. Closing the door behind her, she leaned back against it for a moment and closed her eyes. She took a few breaths, trying to get control of her emotions. The anxiety of the summons, mixed with the worry for Siesta was getting to her, and she couldn't let anyone see her like this. That made the voice that cut through the air her worst nightmare. "What's the matter, Louise? Worried you'll blow your familiar up when you summon it?"

Grinding her teeth together, she opened her eyes and glared at Kirche von Zerbst, who had leaned down with her hands on her hips, giving her an ample view of her 'assets'. Why the dark skinned red head was such a harlot, she'd never know. Taking a step away from the door and crossing her arms, gathering all her nerves before speaking. "No, Zerbst. I have complete confidence when it comes to the Summon Servant I'll summon a sacred, beautiful, and strong familiar spirit that will be unmatched, even with everyone else's familiar spirits combined."

Kirche blinked, tilting her head slightly in a look of slight shock and curiosity. A feeling of pride welled up in Louise chest for managing to sound so confident, only to be washed away as Kirche spoke again. "That didn't answer the question, Louise. Somethings got you riled up, and I'm guessing it for once it wasn't the fact your a Zero, hm?"

Louise froze, not sure how Kirche had managed to read her so easily. Slowly, an embarrassed blush grew across her face before she growled and shoved past. Kirche yelped at the sudden movement, stumbling slightly as she glared at Louise stomping away, shouting over her shoulder. "It's none of your business Zerbst, so stay out of it!"

It didn't take long for her to get out of sight of Zerbst, and it wasn't much longer before she found herself in the already packed dining hall. Ignoring any looks sent her way, she sat herself down in an empty seat. Staring at her the table for a few moments, she shook her head and pinched herself on the arm. There could be no distractions for today, not from Krche, not from the other students, not even her worry for Siesta. She was gonna summon her servant, and it was going to be sacred, strong, and beautiful.

* * *

Siesta kept her chin tucked against her chest as she walked, struggling to keep herself from breaking out in tears as she looked at her new uniform. The red maid uniform wasn't even that bad looking, it just meant that she was working for Count Mott now, and that meant…

A light shudder shook her frame, causing her to stop and try to calm herself. She was still getting the same amount of pay, so her family was still getting supported. Wasn't this just like "The Darling Duke of Denril"? She always had daydreams about that sort of thing, why did this feel so… icky in comparison.

She started walking again, her mind wandering back to the Academy. Leaving had been so hard, even though it had only been a year since she got hired. She had made so many friends, all of the other staff had been so supportive and wonderful. She had even managed to make an unlikely friend in the small pinkett she called Miss Valliere, at least she considered her a friend.

A tear managed to work its way out of her eye, and she reached up to wipe it away. She had considered going to Miss Valliere to ask for help, but she knew that would have been too much. The two weren't really friends, at most acquaintances, even if the young noble reminded her a lot of her younger sisters at times. Beyond that, there wasn't anything that she could really do. Nothing could force Count Mott to sell the contract if he didn't want to. It was surprising just how much she missed the girl already…

" **I beg of you…"**

Letting out a quiet 'EEK', Siesta stumbled. Regaining her balance, she looked around wide eyed. It took a for who the voice belonged to set in, but it eventually did and her eyes widened even more. What was Miss Valliere doing here, did she come after her? Where was she then, and why was she begging? It made no sense…

" **My servant that exists somewhere in the universe…"**

Her servant… Miss Valliere considered her to be her servant? She basically was since she did all of the duties related to her and was constantly requested by name. This was too weird, she couldn't see Louise anywhere. The guards down the hallway weren't even reacting to any of this. Was the voice in her head, was she going insane?

" **My divine, beautiful, and powerful servant…"**

A blush quickly crossed her features as even more confusion set in. It was official, she was going insane. She wasn't divine, nor powerful, and there was no way Miss Valliere would call her beautiful!

" **I wish and desire from the bottom of my heart…"**

The blush grew fiercer and she shook her head rapidly, trying to force the voice out of her head. A flash of light caught her eye and she turned to stare. In the middle of the hallway, in plain view of the guards, was a oval of bright green energy. She took a few tentative steps towards it, her eyes looking it over with uncertainty. What if this was real… What if Miss Valliere really was using magic to save her from Count Mott?

" **Heed my call and answer my guidance!"**

The portal pulsed once and Siesta took a step back away from the portal, her face etched with anxiety for a moment before she smiled. Miss Valliere was ordering her to come, ordering her away from Count Mott's estate, and using magic to ensure it. It was just like "Escape from Excellia Prison", and she was being nervous! With a giddy laugh, she reached a hand out and walked through the portal.

* * *

As Louise finished the incantation and flicked her wrist, the usual explosion echoed out across the courtyard, her classmates shouting loudly as the cloud of dust flew into the air. She coughed, raising her hand to cover her mouth as she started waving her other hand. She swore she had seen a flash of black before the explosion, and was desperate to see what she had summoned. It wasn't very large, whatever it was.

Venturing forward into the smoke, she squinted and kept her mouth covered as she tried to find her familiar. She eventually spotted a silhouette of something resting in the center. Venturing closer, she got more and more detail. It was… a human, wearing a red dress? With black hair? She heard soft muttering off to the side, and a swift breeze flowed through the courtyard, driving the smoke away.

Louise froze, her mouth slightly open, staring at Siesta as she knelt in the center of the summoning circle, her eyes screwed shut as she kept her head down. Barely opening one eye, she glanced up and spotted Louise. Locking eyes with her, she picked her head up and gave her a brilliant, giddy smile before standing up. Bowing at the low at the waist, the smile never left her face even as she broke eye contact. "I have heeded your call, and answered your guidance, Miss Valliere."

Her mouth still open slightly, Louise kept on staring at Siesta, trying in her head to reason out how this could have happened. She had been so confident as she said the incantation, poured so much willpower into it she had been half convinced she was going to pass out as she finished it, had rewritten the summoning circle three times to make sure it was perfect, and she summoned summoned Siesta… At least she managed to kill two birds with one stone.

Laughter shook her from her state, causing both her and Siesta to turn to look at the source. Kirche stood with her hands on her knees, bent forward as she laughed. Louise glanced over at Siesta, who had a lost the smile for a light blush and a look of confusion as she stared wide eyed at the crowd of students, as more started to laugh. Kirche managed to catch her breath enough to shout out at Louise. "Well, at least you got one part right! You managed to summon a beautiful _commoner_!"

A slew of other jeers started pouring out of the crowd as Kirche's taunt opened the flood gate. It slammed back shut as 's short bark of a shout cut the flow off. "That's enough! You are nobles, act to your station. Now, Miss Valliere, finish the ritual."

Louise stared at for a second, almost losing her cool and shouting at how this couldn't be right. She caught herself just in time, closing her eyes for a second and breathing in, before breathing back out and opening her eyes again. Though she could feel the stares of her classmates, she wasn't going to back down now. Her last name as Valliere, and she would live up to it! Turning to look at the still very confused and now nervous Siesta, she felt a very slight and familiar smirk come over her face.

Stepping forward, she raised her wand towards her, noting how she leaned back with a slight look of fear. A sliver of guilt shot through her, and she gave her a small reassuring smile before focusing on the movements of her wand. "My name is Louise Françoise Le Blanc de La Vallière. Pentagon that governs the five powers, give this servant your blessing and make it my familiar spirit."

Finishing the incantation, she reached out with her empty hand and placed it on Siesta's shoulder, pulling her closer and down a little, to her confusion. She quickly leaned in, closing her eyes and catching Siesta by surprise with the kiss. It was a chaste thing, just a delicate pressing of lips for a few seconds. As she pulled back, she mindlessly thought she had soft lips.

Siesta for her part froze, her eyes still in her usual wide eyed expression. Louise grimaced slightly, glancing away at the crowd of students as she knew what was coming next. Siesta's body started getting redder, little puffs of steam starting to come off of her skin. "I… Bu… Uh… I feel… hot...Why do feel hooooaaaaaugh!" She stumbled back, grabbing her right hand as the runes etched themselves into the back of her hand.

Louise moved forward and grabbed hold of her arm, guiding her to the ground where as she continued to half groan half scream in pain. After ten excruciating seconds, she collapsed forward, falling heavily onto Louise shoulder and sending them both to the ground. Louise yelped as the larger girl fell onto her, Siesta's head somehow coming to rest on Louise's chest. As she heard the giggles start erupting to full blown laughter from her classmates, only one thing crossed her mind… Why was this more comfortable than it should be?


	2. Chapter 2 - A Rough Start

Siesta took a deep breath, nervously keeping her eyes fixed onto the cup of tea infront of her, resisting the urge to pull her hands from her lap to stare at the runes on the back of her right hand. That horrendous pain had been from them etching themselves into her hand. She thought she could still feel an ache coming from them, though it was probably just in her head. Everything that happened had flipped what she thought was happening on its head, and she was still trying to figure it out.

Taking her eyes off the cup of tea for a moment, she glanced up at Miss Valliere who had sat across from her. She was staring off out the window, brooding on her own thoughts if her frown was anything to go by. She hadn't said a word since the kiss, and it was worrying her. She wasn't a noble, but she had worked at the Academy for enough time to know the general gist behind what happened. The Springtime Familiar Summoning Ritual.

She had taken care of the older students familiars on occasion, giving them their food in the mornings. They were all well behaved, but you couldn't help but be nervous when laying steaks out for a wolf. Still, she was thankful for the experience now, it helped her understand the situation she found herself in a little better. She had never heard of any human familiar before, and from the way the veteran servants talked, neither had they.

Going back over what she knew in her head, she winced slightly. She had been so happy at the thought that she was being rescued, that it hurt when it turned out to have been an accident. A shot in the dark, a random event that Miss Valliere hadn't intended or even could have controlled. A spell that was meant for summoning wild animals, mundane or magical, bringing a maid out instead. It got her away from Count Mott's estate, but if it hadn't been on purpose, would it keep her from winding up back in his estate?

The thought sent a shiver of fear running through her, causing her to clutch her arm in vain as she tried to drive it off. She couldn't go back, not after getting her hopes so high, and having to endure that pain. The runes meant that Miss Valliere had chosen to accept her as her familiar, even though she was obviously not what she wanted. She just had to do a good enough job that Miss Valliere wouldn't want to part with her, even if Count Mott demanded it! She just had to know what exactly that job was.

Taking another deep breath, she placed her hands onto the table, the left hand covering the right, and put on her best smile. The pinkette had a temper ten times the size of her petite frame, and she was walking on dangerous ground with her already in a bad mood. "Miss Valliere…" Her heart skipped a beat as she turned her eyes towards her, the frustration and disappointment readily apparent. "I-I was just wondering… What is a familiar exactly? I only know that they're usually animals that get summoned by nobles, so I don't know what duties come with being one."

Miss Valliere continued to stare at her, the same expression splayed across her face. Siesta's smile faltered slightly, and she started to fidget, glancing at various points around the room before looking back at Miss Valliere to see if there was a change in expression. She was starting to think that maybe the ritual had broken her when she finally got a tiny smirk and sighed, shaking her head. She reached for her cup of tea and took a sip, seeming to savor it for a moment before speaking. "A familiar is a symbol of the noble's power and element in magic. It is… usually a creature, magical or mundane, bound for life to the noble by the Familiar Runes, which you have on your hand. They serve their master faithfully, being their eyes and ears, gathering reagents and ingredients, defending their master, and in the case of larger familiars, serving as mounts."

Siesta leaned forward as she listened, nodding along as she went through each of the points in her head. She could gather ingredients and whatever reagents were, she just might have to be told what they look like. Serving as 'eyes and ears' probably just meant telling Miss Valliere if she saw anything out of the ordinary, or saw something specific she mentioned, so that was easy. Defending her sounded scary, but she could probably do it better than a mouse or an owl… "Um… M-Miss Valliere, did I hear that part about being 'bound for life', right?"

She nodded, putting her tea cup back onto its saucer before leaning forward. Placing a hand onto her arm, she shifted her left hand off of her right hand and used her other hand to hold it up. She started explaining again, pointing at the light blue runes that had etched themselves into the back of her hand. "Yes, for life. The Familiar Runes signify a contract that is formed when I finished the ritual, a sacred contract that cannot be broken by anything except the death of the master, or the familiar. The entire system was created by Brimir himself, and never once has it summoned a human!"

She finished the last sentence with a groan, bringing her hands back and rubbing her forehead with one, grumbling to herself. Siesta brought her left hand back over her right, rubbing it as she thought about what that meant. A life long contract with Miss Valliere wasn't the worst thing in the world. If it was sacred, there was nothing Count Mott could do. She was safe from him, though it was pretty unlikely she'd be getting any of her stuff back from his estate. It stung to lose the mementos she had of her family, but it beat that man getting to do what he wanted…

She shivered again at the thought, her left hand moving out of the way so she could look at her right hand. The runes suddenly seemed to look a lot better than before, considering they were the main thing keeping her there. Looking up, she noticed Miss Valliere looking at her with what she guessed to be a mixture of frustration, and worry. She blushed a little bit and put the smile back on her face. "I might just be a commoner… but I'm pretty sure I'm better than a mouse, or an owl. I'm probably more useful than most of your classmates familiars!"

She looked at her with an expression of exasperation, sighing and leaning back in the chair with her eyes closed. "No, you aren't getting it. Maybe you're stronger than a mouse or an owl. Maybe you're more useful than your average familiar, but that's only half of it! A mole says the noble's an earth mage, an owl says the noble's a wind mage, a frog says the noble's a water mage, and a salamander says the noble's a fire mage. Tell me, what element does a commoner represent?"

Siesta blinked a bit, tilting her head in confusion as she tried to figure it out. Did she represent earth, since her family was mainly farmers? Maybe she represented water, since she used so much water doing her duties as a maid? She could be air, since the head maid did say she was an airhead… She didn't like that one, she didn't like any of those answers. She did the only thing she could do, and shrugged at Miss Valliere. "I don't know. I'm not a noble though, maybe one of the professors would know?"

Miss Valliere shook her head, her frown growing deeper as she waved a hand dismissively at the door. "They won't know anything, they're probably just as stumped as we are as to what this means. Like I said, this has never happened before as far as I know. Why couldn't it have been simple? I could have gotten a manticore, like mother! Instead I wound up getting a maid and probably a court case with a royal messenger."

Siesta's smile faded as she watched her look down at the table, one hand closing into a fist. It hurt that she would have rather gotten some animal than having rescued her, but she could get that finding out her element was important. Even if had been an accident, she still owed her for saving her from him, and she was still the nicest noble she had ever met, despite her frequent teasing. Her mind set, she leaned forward, reaching and putting her right hand onto Miss Valliere's, causing her to refocus on her with a quirked eyebrow. "I'm sorry for causing you this much trouble, Miss Valliere. Especially after all you've done for me. I promise I'll make it up to you by being the best familiar I can be!"

Miss Valliere blinked rapidly, looking down at where her hand was covered by Siesta's. She seemed to study the runes on the back of her hand for a moment, before realizing something. She blushed and quickly pulled her hand out from under hers, glancing around the room rapidly. "Of course you're going to do your best! I expect nothing less than the best from you! You uh… can start by helping me get ready for bed!"

She tilted her head again, a bit confused by the reaction she gave. She seemed almost embarrassed for some reason. Is that what she looked like when she got embarrassed? If so, she could see why Miss Valliere teased her so much. It was pretty funny to see her so flustered. Getting up from her seat, she gave a ready nod and smile, quickly moving over to help her get out of her uniform and into her nightgown. It was only after that she realized a problem. "Miss Valliere… where shall I be sleeping? As far as I know, familiars sleep with their masters…"

Miss Valliere looked at her in surprise, her eyes darting to a pile of hay next to the bed before sighing. She waved a hand to the bed, still blushing from before as she used her other hand to rub the back of her head. "Since currently nothing proper is set up… I suppose for tonight, you'll share the bed with me "

She looked at her for a moment and nodded, moving to take her uniform off. She was more than happy to get out of Count Mott's red. It wasn't a bad looking uniform, she just didn't want any connection to Count Mott, which meant it had to go. It wasn't until she had started wiggling out of the outfit that she remembered one of the facts that had made her really uncomfortable things about working under Count Mott.

His uniform included a standard undergarment. She let loose a strangled 'eek', pulling the outfit back up and used it to cover herself. Miss Valliere quickly turned to face her, her eyes wide as she looked her over at her. She blushed bright red, looking at the ground and shifting on her feet. "C-Count Mott had a set of undergarments specific to the maid uniforms, it's… embarrassing."

Miss Valliere quirked an eyebrow, looking Siesta up and down for a moment. She shrugged and went around to her side of the bed, sitting down on it and looking back at her, before patting the bed. "Quit whining, it can't be that bad. It's only for one night anyway, in the morning you can go talk to staff and get yourself a spare maid's uniform. That should last until we can go to town and get you something proper for your new duties."

Taking a deep breath, Siesta nodded once and started slowly inching out of the uniform. It really was extremely embarrassing to have to wear such scandalous clothing, and not even have it be comfortable! She wasn't on the same level as that Germanian student in terms of her chest, but the lacy dark red bra that was part of his uniform didn't provide any support at all. Not to mention the ridiculous panty, stocking, garter belt combination that dug just enough into her thigh to be irritating instead of painful. Fully out of the uniform, she folded it up and laid it aside before turning back to the bed.

Miss Valliere sat in the same position she did before, her wide eyes fixed onto her as her entire face was cherry red. As she met her eyes, she snapped her eyes down towards the bed and climbed in, turning her back to Siesta. A little confused, she followed her example, climbing in on the opposite side, and shifting a little bit on the comfiest bed she had ever had the privilege to lay on. She was half tempted to tell Miss Valliere good night, but she was already starting to drift off to sleep herself. The last thought that went through her head before she passed out was the realization that she was laying in the same bed as the person who took her first kiss.

* * *

Siesta smiled happily in front of the mirror and did a little twirl, giggling as she watched the familiar uniform's skirt flare out as she did so. Even if it showed just about as much as Count Mott's uniform, the school's uniform just felt a lot more comfortable on her frame. It actually was just over all more comfortable, as Count Mott's uniform had some stitching in some places that had rubbed a bit against her. Not to mention she had managed to borrow a set of undergarments from one of the maids she was friends with in the staff, so she didn't have to wear that uncomfortable red set ever again.

Turning away from the mirror, she walked over to the window and flung it open, sticking her head out and looking up to gauge the time. Noting that she probably had around an hour before she needed to wake Miss Valliere up for the day, she happily hummed her way to the wardrobe and grabbed one set of the school's uniform, folding it and laying it out on the table. She glanced at the laundry and shrugged, she'd have it done while she was in class.

Her eyes naturally went from the clothes up to the bed, eventually setting on where Miss Valliere lay asleep. She looked completely different while asleep, the frustration and spitfire attitude falling away from her face and her body relaxed. It reminded her of when she'd struggle to wake up her little sisters because they were just too cute as they slept. Though in this case, she was probably around the same age as her, not at least a year older.

Looking away with a smile, she brought her hand to her chin and started rubbing it, trying to figure out what to do with the remaining hour she had. She couldn't clean the room, it was still clean from the last time she had done so. She couldn't make the bed for obvious reasons. Doing the laundry would take too long, so that'd be out. She could try to read one of Miss Valliere's books until she needed to get her up, but she might not want her touching those, and they mostly seemed to be books on magic anyway. She smacked her lips quietly, realizing she was pretty thirsty. Figuring out what she could do with her spare hour, she slipped out of the room as quietly as she could.

Turning around in the hallway, she started walking down the familiar path, humming contently to herself as she went. It was always quiet this early in the morning, before all the students would wake up and the staff was preparing for the day. She passed by a couple familiar faces on the way, dusting off paintings or washing windows, and gave them a friendly wave as she went past. It felt kind of off not to be doing the same thing, but she had equally important duties in her new job!

Nodding to herself as she went around a corner, she crashed into someone and fell flat on her behind. Rubbing it with a mumble, she looked up at the still standing Professor Colbert. Jumping to her feet, she bowed as low as she could, staring at his feet as she nervously grabbed one hand with the other. She should have been paying attention, now all she could was that he'd send her away quick. A small chuckle however surprised her, causing her to look up at Colbert's small smile. With a hand on her shoulder, he got her to stand upright, dusting off her uniform a little bit before speaking. "Siesta, correct? I was hoping to run into you at some point, just wasn't expecting to in the literal sense."

She looked down at the floor and rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly. At least he didn't seem mad at her, but a member of the staff looking for her was worrying in another way. "Um… Why were you looking for me sir?"

Professor Colbert gestured to her right arm with his free hand, giving her a quick look up and down as he did so. It felt different from when Count Mott had done it, she noted. Count Mott felt like he was undressing her with his eyes, while Professor Colbert felt more like he was reading a book, or maybe an experiment? Either way, it was better than Count Mott's looks. "I wanted to take another look at your runes, I didn't get a good look at them yesterday."

She quirked an eyebrow and shrugged, holding her right hand out for him to look. He took it with surprising delicacy in his own right hand, turning it slowly as he inspected the runes. He mumbled a bit to himself before looking back up at Siesta, a new curious glint shining in them. "Interesting, very interesting… I've got some things I need to do, I'll leave you to whatever you were doing "

She watched him let go and walk off, still muttering to himself as he went. That was odd, was there really something special about being a human familiar? Bringing the back of her hand up to eye level, she looked at the runes and frowned. She didn't feel any different, at least, not from anything she thought the runes did. Maybe the professor was just interested in what seemed to be a world first? She shrugged and started walking again, she still had something to do!

It didn't take long for her to get to the kitchen and get everything she needed for her idea. Thankfully, the chefs didn't mind sparing the ingredients when she explained what it was for. With a tray piled high with what she needed, she slipped back through the halls and back into Miss Valliere's room. Noting that she was still asleep, she sat the tray down on the table and got to work. Packing the leaves and spices into the kettle, she poured some water in and put the top on. Stoking the fire back to life, she hung the kettle above it to boil.

A smile still on her face, she turned her back to the fire and set herself to her first real duty of the day. Moving over to the side of the bed, she reached a hand out to Miss Valliere's shoulder, shaking it gently. She murmured and rolled over in her sleep, planting her face into the pillow. Sighing, she shook her shoulder more firmly, leaning forward a bit to speak. "Come on Miss Valliere, you'll be late for breakfast if you don't get up."

With a groan, she rolled back over and slowly opened her eyes in a squint. Sitting upright, she closed her eyes again as she yawned wide, her arms going up as she stretched. Rubbing at her eyes, she turned to let her legs hang off the side of the bed as she looked blearily up at her. "Siesta… Don't you have maid duties to attend to?"

A moment passed before she realized what exactly was going on. Giggling a bit, she moved over to Miss Valliere's uniform for the day, picking up the undergarments and blouse before coming back over. "Miss Valliere, remember what happened yesterday? I'm not just a maid anymore, I'm your familiar?"

Tilting her head in confusion, she stood up before a look of tired realization crossed her face. She nodded and raised her arms, yawning again as she let her get her out of the chemise she slept in. Accepting the undergarments, she slipped them on while she folded up the chemise and laid it aside. Turning around, she spotted Count Mott's uniform laying folded next to her own laundry and lightly blushed. "I remember now… Seeing you in the school's uniform made me think it was all a dream."

Glancing at the pile of laundry, she frowned softly and nodded, finishing off the last button. Reaching back and grabbing the skirt and stockings, she handed them off to her before hearing the kettle start to whistle. Quickly hurrying over to the fireplace, she grabbed the dish cloth she brought and took it off the fire. Shifting the saucer over a bit, she gently poured the tea out into the cup before returning the kettle to its place above the fire. With a small movement, she took the tops off the small containers of milk and honey, picking up the tea spoon with her other hand. Gently, she spooned out some milk four times, and some honey two times, stirring it in into the tea before smiling and shifting the saucer over to the free seat. "I thought some tea would be a good way to start off the day, Miss Valliere. Especially after how hectic it was yesterday."

She straightened up from where she had finished putting on the stockings, blinking as she looked over at the cup in its saucer. Walking over, she waited for her to pull out the chair before sitting down and being pushed in. Picking the tea up, she eyed it for a second before blowing across the top of it and sipping. A hum of satisfaction rose from her as she sipped it again, looking up at her with a quirked eyebrow. "I'm surprised, you remembered exactly how I liked it… And sit down, it's creepy to have you there staring down at me."

A blush quickly crossed her face as she bowed her head, hurrying over to the other seat before sitting down. Glancing at the tray, she shifted it over a bit so it wasn't between the two of them before folding her hands in her lap. An awkward silence grew between the two as she watched her sip her tea, occasionally glancing off to the left or the right. It probably wasn't proper for the servant to initiate conversation… but she was more than just a servant, and the silence was getting unbearable. Getting another smile, she brought her hands up onto the table before speaking. "So, Miss Valliere, what's on the agenda today?"

She looked across at her, sipping her tea as she quirked an eyebrow. Under that look, she grew more and more uncomfortable, squirming in her seat as she waited for an answer. Even though it was just to get a reaction out of her, it still managed to make her feel nervous. Eventually, she got a small smirk on her face and finished off the tea. "Well, today's Founder's Day, so there's no classes. I was thinking breakfast and then heading to town, get you a proper outfit. No familiar of mine will be mistaken for a common maid."

With a massive grin spreading across her face, she hopped up and bowed. She figured it'd be a while before there was a chance for her to get some clothes. Miss Valliere really was the best noble out there! "Thank you, oh thank you thank you! I'd say this is too much, but it'd be an insult to turn down your generosity."

Blinking, she grinned sheepishly and blushed, waving a hand at her. "Don't mention it! I'm just thinking about appearances, it would look bad if my servant was running around in a borrowed maid outfit!" Putting the cup and saucer back onto the tray, she stood up and grabbed her cloak. "Bring the tray with us, we're going to have breakfast out in the courtyard!"

She tilted her head and shrugged, picking the tray up as Miss Valliere fastened her cloak and went to slip her shoes on. Balancing it on one hand, she went open to the door and opened it up, standing to the side to allow her to pass first. Getting a nod in acknowledgment as she passed by, she shut the door after herself. She used her free hand to straighten her skirt, while Miss Valliere fiddled with her cloak a bit. As the two started to walk off, a voice stopped them in their tracks. "Oh ho ho, if it isn't Louise and her _beautiful_ familiar."

Feeling a small blush come across her face, she turned to look at whoever spoke. As she did, she spotted Miss Valliere turning as well, a frustrated look covering her face, her jaw clenched tight. Looking down the hallway, she saw a certain dark skinned student walking down the hallway towards the two of them, a rather large red lizard trailing after with its tail burning bright. The buxom girl had a wide, teasing grin on her face as she waved at the two of them. Miss Valliere squinted her eyes at the girl as she came forward, crossing her arms with a frown. "What do you want Zerbst?"

Clicking her tongue, Zerbst threw her hair back and put one hand against her hip as she stopped. The lizard kept coming forward, sniffing at Siesta's leg. Reaching down with her free hand, she rubbed at the creature's head while she watched the two noble's interact. Though calling it a collision might have been more accurate, considering the sparks that seemed to fly as Zerbst started talking again. "Oh nothing in particular, Louise. I was just interested in meeting your familiar, though I must admit, you surprise me Louise. Who would have thought the first person you let into your bed be a maid!"

Her and Miss Valliere both blinked a few times at that, the comment taking a moment to register in their minds. She quickly blushed as bright as a cherry, freezing up mid scratch on the lizard's head, leaving him to scratch himself against her stiff fingers. Miss Valliere blushed as well, her face twisting with anger as a growl escaped from her throat. "Don't imply such tripe Zerbst! I'm not a harlot like you!"

Ignoring the comment in its entirety and causing her to growl again, she turned to look Siesta up and down. With a hand to her chin, she hummed and seemed to appraise her. Siesta managed to work her way out of the embarrassment induced paralysis, shifting uncomfortably from one foot to another. Feeling the lizard rubbing at her hand, she went back to scratching and petting it, glad to have something to distract her. Zerbst looked at the lizard and nodded, a small smirk crossing her face. "Flame's taken a liking to you. I am Kirche Augusta Frederica von Anhalt Zerbst What's your name, darling? Has Louise here been treating you right?"

Giving a nervous look over at Miss Valliere, she noticed how angry she looked, a small vein visible on her forehead as she ground her teeth. Seeing she'd be no help in that moment, she chose honesty as the best course of action. The two had nothing to hide, so telling her the truth would only help things. A wide smile spread across her face, and she bowed slightly in a small curtsy before speaking. "My name is Siesta de Tarbes, Miss Zerbst. Miss Valliere has been just wonderful, I'm quite happy to be her familiar."

Miss Zerbst quirked an eyebrow, glancing over at Miss Valliere who had lost the look of anger and was just giving her a look of smug satisfaction. Crossing her arms, she tilted her chin up a little and smiled a little. "Of course I've been treating my familiar right Zerbst? I'm not a barbarian like you. I'm even planning on taking a trip to town to purchase some new clothes for her after breakfast. Can't have my familiar being mistaken for a common maid, now can I?"

Giving Miss Valliere a curious look, Miss Zerbst looked over at Siesta with the same look. She just giggled and nodded at Miss Valliere, the same wide smile covering her face. After a few moments of inspecting the two, she laughed, shaking her head slightly. Miss Valliere's mood soured a bit and she squinted at her, while Siesta just tilted her head in confusion. Eventually sliding into giggles, she patted her side, Flame reluctantly abandoning the petting to come over to her side. "This is adorable, it really is. I hope you two enjoy your little date in town, I'm sure you can find something cute for Siesta to wear."

Sputtering, Miss Valliere blushed and growled, her hand drifting down to her wand. Her face as red as a cherry, Siesta glanced over at her with wide eyes, noticing what Miss Valliere might do. Putting her free hand onto her shoulder, she gave it a light shake to get her attention. Avoiding looking at Miss Zerbst, who she could feel still smirking, she nodded down the hallway. "M-Miss Valliere, we'll be late for breakfast if we don't hurry."

Taking a deep breath, Miss Valliere nodded and turned on the spot, quickly walking in the opposite direction of Miss Zerbst. Siesta followed, keeping the tray balanced while she went. Laughing again, Miss Zerbst cupped her hands around her mouth to call out as they left. "I'll be sure to find you two darlings later! I'll just have to know how it went, so don't expect to go skimping on details!"

Shuddering slightly, Siesta kept pace with MIss Valliere, not looking back at Miss Zerbst. Breathing a small sigh of relief as the two of them got around the corner, she glanced over at Miss Valliere. She was still blushing slightly, looking straight ahead as she walked. Miss Zerbst probably teased her a lot, as far as she could tell… At the very least, it didn't seem to be very mean spirited on this occasion. It seemed to get to Miss Valliere though. Hopefully, she'd get out of the funk quickly enough. They had an exciting day ahead of them after all!

* * *

Alright, this second chapter is officially out! This is the longest piece of writing I've uploaded at once to the site, longer than any of the chapters over in my other story. It also was surprisingly easy to write, so I hope you enjoy reading it. Thanks to all those who've followed and favorited this story, I wasn't expecting this level of attention this soon, but hey, I'm not gonna complain! Next chapter should be up in two weeks, as I swap between this and my other story.


	3. Chapter 3 - Halfway There

Siesta hummed happily as she exited out onto the courtyard, blinking in the sunlight as her eyes adjusted to the light. Scattered around the courtyard were tables seating students, most of them with their familiars close at hand. A couple of the other maids were walking around handing out the students breakfast and drinks. It reminded her of how glad the staff was to have her back, and how grateful they were to Miss Valliere for bringing her back. The evidence was in the basket in her hands, full of food the head chef personally made to be easy to eat on the road and still delicious.

Spotting Louise sitting and staring off into space alone, she started walking over with a spring in her step. She was already imagining how happy Louise was gonna be knowing they were gonna be able to start their journey early, and still eat well. They could even had food for lunch! It lit her face up with a bright smile as she navigated her way through the tables, students, and familiars, very careful to not bump into anyone or step on any tails.

One of the maids close to her stopped and looked down on the ground, a small purple vial resting against her foot. She glanced at the vial, then at a blond boy sitting at a nearby table, then at the tray in her hands. Stepping up next to the maid, Siesta gave her a quick nod and waved with a hand to let her move on. Bending down, she picked the bottle up and moved next to the table, bowing her head politely at the boy. "Excuse me, Mister Gramont, I think you dropped this?"

The boy, who she now recognized as Guiche de Gramont, looked over at her and blinked as he spotted the vial, his hand slipping quickly into his pocket as his face paled slightly. He shook his head no, glancing at the other boys as they looked curiously at the bottle. "No, that isn't mine. I've never seen that in my life."

Keeping the polite smile on her face, she nodded and turned to the rest of the boys, holding the vial out to let them see it. They looked at it and glanced at each other, even as Guiche paled a bit more. "Would this belong to any of you, or do you know who it belongs to?"

"I'm pretty sure that's Montomercy's perfume. What, are you going out with her now, Guiche?" One of the other boys supplied, shifting the glasses on his pudgy face as he leaned in a bit to look at the vial. Guiche glared at him as Siesta looked back at him with a confused look. So, this vial belonged to his girlfriend? Why in the world would he lie about it not belonging to him, or never seeing it before?

A sniffle sounded out from behind her and she turned to look behind her with Guiche, a look of dread coming onto his features as he did so. A first year brunette was staring at Guiche, sniffling as tears formed in the corners of her eyes. She took a few steps towards him as Siesta took a few steps away, clenching the cloak of her uniform tightly. "I… I should have known! Everyone kept telling me..."

"Wait, this is all just a mi-" He was cut off as the girl took a step forward and swung a hand out, slapping him hard across the cheek. She turned and ran away sobbing, as he rubbed the growing red spot on his cheek. With a hand across her mouth in slight horror, she watched as a girl with curly blond hair got up and started marching over, a vein visible on her forehead as she grit her turned and his eyes went wide as he spotted the girl. He backpedaled, bumping into the table and quickly raising his hands as she came towards him.

"Momo, my darling, I can explain, this isn't what it lo-" He was cut off again as Montomercy swung her arm at his other cheek. The sound reverberated across the courtyard as he stumbled from the blow. She whirled around and started marching off, students getting out of her way as Guiche brought a hand to his cheek. Siesta kept her eyes on him as she started to slowly back away, only to stop frozen as he turned towards her with an infuriated look in his eyes. "I demand your name, maid! Through your incompetence, you've made two maidens cry!"

"S-Siesta de Tarbes… I am Miss V-Valliere's familiar, sir. I was simply t-trying the perfume to whoever lost it." Hunching her shoulders inward, she tried to make herself look smaller as he gave her a withering glare. Whispers sprung up from the crowd that had gathered around them, and Guiche's eyes narrowed as he looked her over again. This couldn't be happening, this was supposed to be a good day!

"That makes sense, considering it's a measure of your character that you accepted whatever gold Louise the Zero offered you to pose as her familiar. How much did she offer you anyway? Probably wasn't much, considering you're just a maid." Her eyes widened in confusion as the crowd laughed. They thought she was… being paid to pretend to be her familiar? That the two of them were lying, and pretending ? She shook her head rapidly, her black tresses whipping back and forth as she responded.

"She offered me nothing! Miss Valliere summoned me as her familiar with her magic! I was in a hallway, a green portal appeared, I heard her voice, I went through, and then I appeared in the courtyard!" Her heart dropped a bit as Guiche laughed. He shook his head and quirked an eyebrow, his anger falling away and being replaced with smug amusement. She glanced around at the crowd, wincing at their mocking laughter.

"Yes yes, I see you've reviewed your story with her. I must admit, I thought she'd have hired someone more impressive. Considering how much of an embarrassment she must be to her family, I guess she probably didn't have enough money to hire anyone better." Guiche put a hand onto his hip and leaned onto his leg, basking in the laughter and attention the two were getting. Siesta's grip tightened on the basket, quivering slightly as she looked down towards the ground, tears starting to form in the corner of eyes..

Guiche was calling Miss Valliere an embarrassment to her family. He, was calling her, an embarrassment. This conniving little blond rat, who had been caught cheating and tried to pass the blame onto her, was calling her an embarrassment. Her head came up quickly and his eyebrows shot up at the fierce expression set on her face. "Y-You have no right to refer to her as an embarrassment! Miss Valliere is the most honorable, charitable, and kindest noble I have ever met! She… She saved me from being Count Mott's mistress, even if it was just an accident! She's ten times the noble you are, even if she isn't that good with magic! Insult me as much as you want, but don't insult Miss Valliere to me, you… You two-timing blond fop!"

Everyone stood silent in shock, Siesta breathing heavily as she stood quivering in her spot. As she felt their eyes on her, she realized exactly what she had just done. Her face paled as the anger drained away for fear, as Guiche came out of his stunned silence. His face grew red and she could swear he growled, his hand going to the rose wand at his side. "It seems I'll have to remind you of your place, maid. Regardless of reason, no commoner can speak to a noble in s-"

"GUICHE!" A shout rang out from behind the crowd and they quickly parted as Miss Valliere marched through. Her wand was already in her hand, her face was set into a scowl and her eyes blazed. Guiche turned to face her and was taken back by the fury of the spitfire, his hand moving away from his wand. He opened his mouth to speak, only to let out a small grunt as she jabbed her wand into his stomach.

"I'm only going to say this once, so make sure to listen well, Guiche! If you have an issue with my familiar, you'll bring it to me! You're not going to try and publicly embarrass her to hide the fact that you're a cheating snake in the grass who can't keep it in his pants. You're not going to try and take any disciplinary actions against a defenseless girl with your own hand. If I hear about you doing so, or trying to do so again, you will regret it! This applies to EVERYONE!"

The sheer venom in her tone made Guiche back up as she advanced on him, his back hitting a table as he raised his hands with her wand pointed under his chin. The crowd murmured to themselves, shifting uncomfortably backwards as they put some space between themselves and the potential blast zone. Siesta stared awestruck at Miss Valliere. She had finally gotten to see her mistress' explosive temper first hand, and she was glad it wasn't directed at her. Comparing her and Guiche's anger was like comparing a hearth to a forest fire.

"Come on Siesta, we're leaving." With those last words, Miss Valliere whirled around and started marching off. She quickly followed in her wake as the crowd parted before her, no one wanting to be close to the possible explosion. Picking up her pace a little to be closer to her, she glanced nervously at the crowd. Her eyes managed to land on Miss Zerbst and a small blue haired girl reading a book next to her. Her expression didn't hold the shock of the rest of the students, she just seemed… impressed.

Their pace quickly carried them out of the courtyard and into the halls. The two stayed quiet, Miss Valliere's expression set into an unwavering scowl, a white-knuckle grip on her wand. Now that the relief had passed, guilt had started to work its way through her mind. If she hadn't stopped to help that other maid, she would have avoided that situation entirely. Miss Valliere wouldn't have had to come to her rescue, and she wouldn't have distanced herself even further from her classmates in the process.

"I'm sorry." The words left her mouth of seemingly their own accord. Louise stopped and turned to look at her, still scowling. She drew in on herself and closed her eyes, terrified of bringing out that explosive temper. "I-I stopped to help another maid and that's what got me in that mess. I should have just ignored it and kept walking. It's my fault today's ruined, and making things even worse between you and your classmates. I hope you can forgive me, I'm willing to accept any punishment Miss Va-"

"Louise." She opened one eye at the interruption, the other opening as she found Miss Valliere with a hand pressed against her forehead, looking towards the floor. "From now on, call me Louise. You and maybe the teachers are the only ones who've earned the right. I'm not gonna blame you for anything Siesta. You were just trying to help someone out quickly. I can't blame you for having good manners. Nor could I blame you for trying to defend my reputation…"

She let out a groan and brought her other hand up to her face, rubbing it. "I can't believe they'd start spreading such trash… The first bit of proper magic I've ever done, and they're trying to claim it was faked! The ignorant bunch of… Ugh." She dropped her hands from her face and sighed, the anger seeming to have faded down to disappointment and frustration. The sight of her so despondent made Siesta's stomach drop.

Glancing around to make sure no one was in sight, she sat her basket down and stepped forward. She wrapped her arms around Miss Valliere and pulled her into a hug, causing her to stiffen slightly. It was only for a moment, before she pulled back, sliding her arms up to rest her hands on her shoulders. A small frown came onto her face as she saw the expression of frustration still written on her master's face, so she started.

"Miss Val- Louise. I'm just a commoner, so my word doesn't carry nearly as much weight as theirs. But I know you cast the spell correctly, and did magic. The proof is right here on my hand. If anyone denies it, well they're just idiots. We know the truth, so that's all that matters. No one can take the truth away from you, right? So let them gossip and make up silly rumors, they still will never be half the noble you are… Thank you for saving me. Again."

She let go of her shoulders and took another step back, bending over slightly to pick up the basket. Holding it in both her hands, she looked back at Louise, whose face had frozen into an expression that proved unreadable. She blinked and tilted her head, stepping closer and poking her side. Coming back to reality, she shook her head a bit and looked over at Siesta. A small, sheepish smile crossed her face and she brought a hand to the back of her neck, rubbing it. "Don't mention it Siesta. It's what friends are for… Thanks you, by the way. I needed that."

A bright smile split her face as she let out a tiny squeal of happiness, wrapping her free arm around Louise and pulling her in for another quick hug. She stiffened up again as she squeezed, but smiled as she let go and bounced up and down on the spot. Louise considered her a friend, not just a servant! The stress induced exhaustion seemed to melt away at that announcement, and the day seemed like it could be nothing but perfect!

Louise motioned with a hand for her to follow and she happily did, skipping along behind her as the two went towards the stables. Neither of them noticed Zerbst duck back behind the corner, covering her mouth with a hand to stifle a giggle. The small blue haired girl stood next to her, reading her book, occasionally flipping the page. "Tabitha, you have to agree with me, those two really are adorable."

She glanced up for a moment at her, her deadpan expression holding strong against Zerbst's delighted smirk. Her eyes fell back to her book and Zerbst let out a giggle, the two starting to walk back to the courtyard. A small, quiet word came from Tabitha's mouth as they walked, causing Zerbst to glance over at her. "Angry."

"Hm… You're right, Guiche is rather livid, despite him having no right to be. We'll have to keep an eye on him, don't want him ruining their first date~" Zerbst laughed and put an arm around Tabitha, only to yelp as her staff whacked her on the head. She let out a little whine and rubbed the spot, as the two kept on walking.

* * *

Louise took in the tailor's shop for what felt like the hundredth time as she sat waiting. The room wasn't particularly large, wooden mannequins standing around, draped in examples of the tailor's work. A clerk was settled behind the counter, counting through the coin she had given over and sorting it. A small curtain separated the store from where the actual work happened, and it was back there that one of the tailor's apprentices was with Siesta, tailoring her clothing.

She sighed and leaned back in the chair she was sat in, closing her eyes and mentally going over what their purchases in her head. Since Siesta lacked an entire wardrobe, due to neither of them really wanting to start the issue that they'd have with Count Mott, she needed new everything. It could have been cheaper if she had gone with normal commoner's clothes, but Siesta wasn't a normal commoner. She was basically on the same level as a handmaid, so she needed clothes to reflect her station.

After a little bit of looking around the shop and convincing Siesta that it was perfectly fine for her to spend over half of her allowance, they managed to figure out what they were going to buy. Four outfits in total along with accompanying undergarments. Three sets of the same outfit that the apprentice explained were meant for the more 'adventurous sort', and one simple black dress in case of a formal occasion. That one had been the most expensive and worrying to Siesta, but some words of explanation managed to calm her down.

A small smirk came across her face for a moment before fading with a sigh as her thoughts drifted to going back over the day's events. It had been one annoyance or frustration after another for the first half of it. First there was Zerbst getting ideas as to what the two had done over the course of the night. An annoyance sure, but honestly one she could put aside easily enough. Zerbst was being Zerbst, of course her mind would go to such tripe.

What really had stung was the audacity the rest of the students had. Claiming that her one achievement of magic had been faked was a blow to her pride, even if she and Siesta knew the truth. They hadn't even reached the same conclusion she had, that summoning a commoner meant that she had no affinity for magic whatsoever. They jumped to the idea that even that much was impossible to her, that she had to have faked it. They'd never stop calling her a Zero.

The sound of the curtain shifting brought her out of her thoughts, and she stood up as she looked over. The apprentice stepped out first, holding the curtain as Siesta followed after, holding the basket in her hands. In place of the maid uniform top, a simple loose white blouse, a few buttons at the neck allowing it to breath in case of heat. The sleeves flared out wide at the end, with buttons in place to tighten them if need be. A pair of calf leather gloves covered her hands, a decision she had made so that she hopefully wouldn't be bothered about her runes. A simple belt held up a loose dark grey skirt that ended above the knee, and underneath the skirt was a pair of leather breeches. The entire ensemble was finished off by a pair of knee high boots.

Siesta stepped forward a bit and turned to face the tailor, bowing slightly and offering a word of effect the clothing had on her appearance was drastic. Louise had to admit that it made her look bolder and a fair bit more mature. It reminded her a bit of sailors and the few books of swashbuckler's she had chosen to read in the past. A small smile came across her face and she stepped forward as Siesta walked towards her. "Perfect. No one's going to mistake you for a maid now, and I can see why he said it was for the more 'adventurous' sort. It looks exactly like the kind of thing that you'd wear to go traipsing to who knows where."

A giggle welled up from Siesta's throat and she nodded along, doing a spin to allow the skirt to swish and sway. Her smile widened as she watched, some pride welling up in her chest. Siesta had called her the 'most honorable, charitable, and kindest noble she had ever met', and she found some comfort in living up to her expectations. If she couldn't live up the expectations of nobility in terms of talent, she could at least exceed the expectations in temperment. She finished her twirling and bowed, a grin spreading across her face. "I'm glad you like it Louise. I have to admit, wearing this is a lot more comfortable than the maid uniform. I haven't worn boots like these since I worked back home on my family's farm, and those were nowhere near this quality."

"If you're going to do your duties to the best of your abilities, you're going to need to be comfortable. But anyway, come on, we don't want to miss dinner." Waving an hand, she turned and left the building, Siesta following quickly behind with the basket still in her hands. Motioning for Siesta to take the lead, the two started walking down the busy street. With Siesta clearing the way through the crowd, it left Louise with even more time for thought. The contest was coming up, and she really did want to put on an impressive show. What they could do for the show however, didn't amount to much. A maid's skill set really wasn't that showy… Maybe she'd be able to teach her how to dance?

Ideas on what to do for the contest quickly came and went as the two walked, a lot of them getting rejected while a small list of possible ideas growing in her head. She was so engrossed in her thoughts that she didn't even notice Siesta stop and turn to her, walking directly into her. The two yelped and tumbled forward onto the cobbles, Louise lying on top with Siesta on her back. The crowd simply split around them, passing them glance and an occasional laugh as they tried to get themselves upright and untangled. Once upright, Siesta grabbed her by the arm and dragged her into a doorway, hands on her shoulders as she looked her up and down in a slight panic. "Are you alright? I am really sorry, I shouldn't have stopped like that. It was an accident waiting to happen."

Grumbling, Louise knocked her hands off and knocked what little dust was on her off. She glanced at Siesta's guilty and worried face, and sighed, waving a hand in a dismissive motion. "You cushioned my fall, so I am fine. Still, give some warning next time before you stop out of nowhere like that. Did you have some reason to stop, or were you just trying to comment on something?"

Her expression swapped from worry to slight nervousness, and she motioned up towards the sign of the building they were in front of. It was a simple wooden sign with an image of a sword carved into it. Looking at the sign and then back to Siesta, Louise quirked an eyebrow as she started to explain. "It was just a thought… As your familiar, I'm supposed to be able to protect you… But I can barely protect myself. I want something to defend myself with… just a dagger or something, in case of wolves or anything else along those lines!"

She tilted her head up slightly and rubbed her chin, thinking over what Siesta just said. Everything she said was true, it was her duty to protect her. She glanced at Siesta, looking her up and down. With that outfit on, she did kind of look like some kind of swashbuckler. The nervous expression ruined the effect, but the ensemble gave her an idea for the contest. A small smirk spread across her face and she nodded, opening the door to the shop as Siesta slipped in behind her with a smile.

Blinking, she let her eyes adjust to the dimmer lighting the shop had. It was a decently sized place, with racks along the walls lined with a variety of weapons, and barrels containing the excess. The counter was towards the back of the shop, the owner leaning onto it and giving them a curious look. Tilting her head up slightly, she walked over as Siesta trailed along behind, looking at the various weapons with a small amount of wonder. "I would like to look at your swords. Something elegant and fitting for my servant."

The shopkeep looked between Louise and Siesta for a moment before getting a small smile and bowing, heading off into the back of the shop. She sighed and tapped her foot, glancing around the room and Siesta wandered off a little to stare at a bow. Counting through the money she had in her head, she let out a small sigh. Hopefully this wouldn't be too expensive, else she'd have no money at all for a while. The curtain shifted and the man came out, carrying an elaborate scabbard made entirely of gold. "This was made by master Germanian Alchemists. It's the best blade I have."

Coming back over from looking at the bow, the two stared in awe as he unsheathed it. The handle was a masterpiece of gold and silver, inset with rubies and platinum. The blade shone brightly, even with the dim light of the room, and it was about as long as Siesta's torso. It was a work of art, and definitely fit the criteria of 'elegant'. Her hand immediately went to her pouch, pulling it out and starting to open it. "How much is it?"

"Three thousand gold." She froze and Siesta froze, slowly looking up at him incredulously. He simply smirked and crossed his arms, and a small growl grew in Louise' throat. There was no way this man truly expected them to pay that much?

"That's enough to buy an entire estate!" She shouted, throwing a hand up in exasperation. Siesta took a few steps away from the fiery pinkette, choosing to quietly shift through a barrel a bit away. The merchant's smirk fell away and his brow furrowed as he squinted at her, and Louise just glared back.

"A sword this fine is worth a castle. Even your average blade goes for around one hundred and fifty gold pieces brand new." Louise blinked and squinted at the man as he squinted back, trying to figure out if he was trying to rip her off. If they needed to, they could shop around a bit and see if his claim was true…

"Louise… I don't need anything fancy or new. I might not know a lot about swords, but I know a lot about cleaning. I could probably take a rusty rod like this and make it look nice and new!" The two looked over as she lifted a sheathed sword out of a barrel. The merchant blanched slightly as he spotted that sheath, and Louise just frowned as she looked at it. Siesta deserved better than a rusty old piece of junk, and it'd reflect poorly on herself if she couldn't afford her better.

"Who're you calling a rusty rod?" A voice suddenly called out of nowhere. Siesta jumped slightly, pulling the sheath to her chest as she looked around. The merchant groaned and slapped a hand to his forehead, Louise quirking his eyebrow at him before the voice started again. "This is a pretty unusual way of apologizing, but I'm not gonna complain. Been a long time since a lady's held me like this."

Siesta thrust the sheath away from her and stared, the blade had popped out of its scabbard a little bit, and a bit of scrollwork at the base of its blade was moving as if it was a mouth. Louise stared at the blade, the comment ignored for the sheer ridiculousness of a talking sword. How in the world, that the one sword that Siesta decided to pick up, be a magic talking sword. "You all gonna keep on staring, or are you gonna do the smart thing and buy me?"

"I'm sorry for insulting you… Mister Sword, but why would buying you be a smart thing to do? You have to admit, you're pretty rusty." Holding the blade up so that the scrollwork was at eye level, Siesta quirked an eyebrow at it. Louise couldn't believe the fact that she had managed to get over the fact that a talking sword had just sassed all of them. She glanced over at the merchant, who was just staying quiet with a frown on his face.

"I'm only rusty because that idiot behind the counter doesn't take care of his merchandise! He's got a priceless artifact, me, the legendary sword Derflinger, sitting around in his shop, and he won't even do any maintenance! I've been wielded by the greatest warriors throughout the ages! Underneath this layer of neglect is a blade without equal!" The merchant growled and shook his head, Louise looking over at him with a quirked eyebrow. The thing was pretty annoying, and was probably lying about its past as well. She could see why he wouldn't bother with the thing.

"All you do is scare away my customers, you piece of junk! I should have had you melted for scrap ages ago." Siesta ignored the merchant, tilting her head as she looked at Derflinger. A few moments passed with her doing that, before she brought a hand to his hilt and with one fluid movement, drew him from his sheath. He wasn't a pretty sword at the moment, covered in a layer of brown rust, not was likely ever a particularly pretty sword. The only ornamentation on the blade at all was the small bit of scrollwork at the base that he seemed to use as a mouth. The handle was wrapped in plain white cloth, and overall it was a surprisingly thin blade with a single edge. She put down the sheath and placed her other hand on the hilt, her arms folding downward into a stance. Derflinger let out a small hum of appreciation, and Louise couldn't help but agree internally as she watched. Siesta looked almost completely different as she held that blade, living up to her outfit properly.

"You buy me partner, and I promise you, we'll be going places!" Derflinger practically vibrated with excitement, the moment being broken as Siesta blinked and looked at him. Louise sighed and turned to face the merchant again, opening her coin purse. Though the blade was annoying, it seemed to be the best fit for Siesta, so she wasn't leaving without it.

* * *

"So, you've got to keep your legs slightly bent and your feet flat on the ground when sword fighting?" Siesta asked, before reaching the sandwich around Louise so that she could take it. Louise hummed her thanks as the two rode further onward down the road. It was around time for lunch, and she was really glad the chef had thought to include food for it. Being in the staff's good graces was really nice, she'd have to make a note to keep on any and all staff's good side from now on.

"Mhm. The saying 'getting caught on the flat foot doesn't apply here. Well it does, but not literally! If you're not set steady, a good opponent will just rush and try to knock you over." Derflinger said from his scabbard, Siesta nodding as she grabbed a sandwich of her own to eat. Louise listened in as she looked around the countryside. When he wasn't making perverted jokes and being generally annoying, Derflinger actually had a pretty decent amount of information to give on sword fighting. With time, Siesta could become skilled with him…

"Louise!" A shout interrupted her train of thought as they turned around a bend in the road. Sitting in the dead center of the road in front of them, was a small group, Guiche standing in front of them with his arms crossed. Off to the side of the road was Zerbst shaking her head, and Tabitha sitting on a blue dragon, reading a book. Siesta shifted uneasily behind her, and Louise grimaced slightly. Out of all the unpleasant surprises, the only one that could top this would have been running into Count Mott.

"What do you want now Guiche? Came to be berated some more in front of your friends?" Guiche growled, his grip tightening on his arms. His friends looked at each other, and Zerbst got an offended look on her face. She could hear Siesta softly whispering to Derflinger, explaining who Guiche was and answering his questions.

"No Zero. What I want is simple. Both you and that commoner you've taken under your protection have insulted me. I cannot let this stand, so." He pulled his wand from his side with a flourish, pointing it towards the two of them. "I challenge you to a duel!"

* * *

So… Who doesn't like a cliffhanger? This honestly didn't take overly long in of itself to write, the thing that kept it from coming out was the amount of time it took to write the last chapter for my other story. Who knew writing something completely new is more difficult than adapting something with an already established plot? I'm over all happy with this chapter, but I can't help but feel like I might be moving things along too quickly. What do you all think?


	4. Chapter 4 - Tango for Two

"I challenge you to a duel!" Guiche's words rang out across the road and the surrounding fields, his wand pointed at the two of them. Louise just leveled an incredulous stare at him, even as she felt Siesta grow stiff behind her. She replayed the words over in her mind a few times, to make sure she was truly grasping the stupidity of what Guiche wanted. He, in a vain attempt to save face amongst his friends, was challenging her to a duel.

A growl grew in her throat as she waved a hand to indicate that Siesta should get off the horse. After a clumsy moment, she slid off herself with Siesta's help. Walking forward with her arms crossed, she kept her eyes locked on Guiche. He brought his wand back to a resting position and smirked, one hand planted onto his hip. Stopping, she crossed her arms and scowled at him. "Guiche… I know you're stupid, but I never thought you were this stupid. Duels between students are forbidden. Have you forgot, did getting slapped like that knock something loose up there?"

His face contorting into an expression of rage, he opened his mouth to say something before stopping himself. It took him a few deep breaths before he calmed down, but once he had, he let a scowl slide onto his face. "Louise… The rules say that duels between students aren't allowed on school grounds. We definitely aren't on school grounds, so you don't have an excuse. I challenge you to a duel, to defend my honor!"

"You can't defend what you never had, you fool." She felt a smirk grow on her face as Guiche got angrier, his face starting to grow red. A small sense of pride grew as she watched his friends whisper to each other, and Zerbst stifle a giggle by covering her mouth. She used a hand to casually flip her hair back, letting a laugh fly between her lips as she looked back at him.. "Honestly, this is more embarrassing than if you just had stayed quiet. Is your ego really that fragile that you can't accept it when someone calls you out on your nonsense?"

Gritting his teeth, he stomped his foot and leveled a glare at her smug face. With a flourish of his wand, a rose petal fell off his wand, slowly drifting to the ground in front of him. Her laughter caught in her throat as she watched it touch the ground, sinking into it. A few moments passed in an eternity before the ground suddenly flowed upward, quickly forming a humanoid figure. The dirt fell away to reveal a suit of bronze armor, towering a full head above almost everyone. A savage grin formed on his face as he crossed his arms in pride. "You're one to talk about honor, when you have to resort to lying and hiring a commoner to pretend to be your familiar. You're not a mage nor a noble, you're just a Zero! You've never belonged at the academy, and my bronze valkyrie will be the one to make you finally admit it."

A silence fell as Guiche finished speaking, the only sound being that of the breeze. Louise stared at the valkyrie, somehow managing to keep her face completely blank despite the storm that raged inside her head. She knew the truth, Siesta knew the truth, why would no one else accept the truth? Was it just because he was angry, and needed something to throw back at her to distract from his own faults? How dare he try to deny her first real achievement? How dare he give voice to the doubts that she had for herself? It didn't change the fact he was a cheating, arrogant, bastard!

"Fine, I accept your duel. If handing you back your valkyrie on a silver platter is what it will take to get you to SHUT UP, then I will gladly do it!" Taking her wand into her hand with a white knuckle grip, she turned and marched off the side of the road. Still grinning, Guiche and his valkyrie followed suit, following her into the field adjacent the road. Everyone moved to follow, with Siesta keeping behind Louise and the rest of the group standing off to the side. Taking her place opposite of him on the side of the field, she looked over at the little crowd.

Zerbst cupped her hands and shouted out to her. "I am fully expecting a good show from you Louise! Give that two timer a healthy dose of what he deserves." Blinking at the encouragement, a grin grew on her face as she turned to face him. His own grew faded a little as he saw how eager she had suddenly become. Guiche was going to be sorry to ever even getting this idea after she was done with him. He didn't even have a clue how much she had wanted to do this, or for how long!

A single member of Guiche's group walked forward, a chubby blond with an owl. He glanced nervously between the two of them before raising an arm. "The duel between Guiche de Gramont and Louise de La Vallière shall begin on the count of three." A murmur grew in the ground and Zerbst turned away to Tabitha, slipping her wand from her pocket and nodding. "One." Siesta shifted where she stood, a fair distance behind Louise. Her hand edged towards Derflinger's hilt, even as she tensed up. "Two." Louise recited the spell she was going to use internally, her wand twitching with the motions. "Three!"

The golem suddenly burst forward in an explosion of movement, rapidly closing the distance between the two of them. It was already halfway to her by the time she got her wand up and pointed at it. "Fireball!" The shout tore from her lips as she cast the spell, an all too familiar explosion engulfing the valkyrie and kicking up a cloud of dust. She kept her wand pointed towards the cloud as she waited for it to disperse.

The wind quickly blew the dust away, revealing the valkyrie getting up. A small crater had formed next to it, and one its arms was completely gone. Guiche gaped in shock at the damage, his jaw hanging open slightly as everyone else stared. Louise managed to get over it quickly as the construct started its charge towards her again. "Fireball!"

The explosion engulfed the valkyrie again, causing another cloud of dust. Choosing to backup a few steps, she waited as the cloud dispersed. The valkyrie lay in pieces around the area of the spell, quickly sinking into the dirt as the spell faded. Guiche watched it disappear and growled, swinging his wand again with a flourish as two more petals fell, and two more golems rose. "I'm not going to lose to the Zero! Valkyries, charge!"

The two new constructs rushed forward, splitting up to come at her from both sides. Backpedaling quickly, she brought her wand up at the one on the left and quickly cast another fireball, not stopping to pay attention to the results as she turned. The other valkyrie seemed right on top of her as she cast the spell again, the explosion engulfing it and sending her tumbling backwards out of the resulting cloud of dust. She somehow managed to keep a hold of her wand, even as she got back up on her unsteady feet.

Glancing backwards, she realized she was now only a few feet away from Siesta. There was only a second for her to look at Siesta's concerned face before she turned around to face Guiche. She ignored the small pains that came from her tumble and squinted at the dust cloud, keeping her wand pointed towards it. The ringing in her ears died down enough for her to hear a heavy thud, the only indication she had of what was to come as a valkyrie lunged out of the cloud, a fist connecting directly with her gut.

Her breath flew from her lungs as she hit the ground, and she rolled over as she gasped in air, staring at the valkyrie as it turned to face her. She raised her wand at it, fumbling to try and cast her spell. The only thing that escaped her mouth were gasps for air, leaving her helpless as the valkyrie came at her. Screwing her eyes shut, she prepared herself for the pain she knew was coming. She had talked a big talk, but in the end, she hadn't been good enough.

A short, but horrific sound of metal being torn filled the air, followed by two heavy thumps. What followed was complete silence, except for the wind blowing across the field. Full of hesitation, she opened an eye to see why the pain hadn't come. Her other eye shot open in confusion as she tried to figure out why Siesta was standing there in front of her, Derflinger drawn and held at the ready. Her eyes drifted down to the ground in front of her, where the golem lay, its torso and legs bisected at the waste.

She looked at the crowd, who were all staring with open shock written all across their faces at Siesta. Glancing over at Guiche, she noticed the same expression written across his face. She looked back at Siesta as she in turned around to look at her, their faces both etched equally with confusion and shock. Bending down, the familiar offered the master a hand, and she took it, getting pulled to her feet. "Louise… Are you alright? I'm sorry I haven't been performing my duties…"

"Siesta… What're you going on about? How'd you manage to do that?" Her confusion spread into her voice as she stared at her, shifting between Siesta and Derflinger as she tried to figure it out in her head. Derflinger chuckled quietly, which she could tell was out of character even in her current state. Why wasn't he making any stupid jokes or quips? Siesta's eyes shifted to the ground, her confusion becoming mixed with sadness as she sighed.

"I'm your familiar… I'm supposed to be protecting you, and I was just standing off to the side as you threw yourself into danger… I'm not sure how I did that, but I'm so sorry for not doing it earlier!" She threw one arm out and wrapped Louise with a hug, pulling the smaller girl into her chest. The crowd only watched as Louise briefly struggled before just allowing it, sighing as she started rubbing the shaking girl's back. If her adrenaline wasn't still pumping, she probably wouldn't be taking this as well as she was, but it's a blessing for now.

"Interference! Louise cheated by having that commoner save her, just as expected really of the Zero!" Guiche's shout from the other side of the field drew everyone's attention as he crossed his arms and grinned. Louise leveled a glare at him as Siesta stilled and let go, turning to face him with Derflinger still in hand. That was a fair point, she had just received outside help for the duel, even if it was with good intentions. A sigh escaped her lips, but she was interrupted before she could speak by Zerbst shouting from the sidelines.

"Guiche, don't you remember? A familiar is considered another aspect of a mage. Since that commoner is her familiar, it's entirely within the rules for her to come to Louise's aid. Are you really that scared of Louise and a commoner that you'll try using a technicality to win?" She completed it with a laugh, covering her mouth with a hand as the crowd stared at her. Louise turned to look at Siesta for a second before smiling. Siesta faced her as well and smiled back, before the both of them turned to face Guiche.

He looked between the two of them, his face growing uncertain for a second before he growled and waved his wand again, three petals flying off. They fell and hit the ground, quickly forming into three more valkyries, this time armed with swords, shields, and spears. Louise's eyes widened and she looked with uncertainty at Siesta, even as Guiche smirked with growing confidence. Was he really that angry, that he was going to try and actually injure them? The punch had hurt, but it probably would only bruise, no blood shed.

Siesta glanced back at her with an equally uncertain expression, a moment of understanding passing between the two. Perhaps it was the familiar contract, but in that moment, Louise managed to get an entire conversations worth of meaning out of that look. She smiled at her, and she smiled back, before they turned to look at Guiche again. They weren't backing down, they were gonna beat Guiche and his valkyries, and show everyone why they had just as much right to be there as them.

The two sides stared at each other for a moment, Louise noticing out of the corner of her eye Siesta's stance. She was completely steady, no trembling, no shaking. Where this wellspring of courage had come from, she had no idea, but it seemed Siesta had managed to get the same message out of their silent conversation. Her smile turned into a grin as she flicked her wand out and let her spell manifest, an explosion and resulting cloud of dust engulfing the valkyries

Two of the three valkyries burst forward from the cloud, splitting up to flank them, the exact same way as the last group. Louise grimaced and leveled her wand on the one coming at them from the right, the spell coming out faster than before and engulfing it. She glanced to the left and saw Siesta darting forward to engage one with a spear, tearing her eyes off them just long enough to cast another two spells at approximately where she thought the valkyrie might be.

She whirled with her wand raised, internally cursing as she saw that the two were too close for her to cast a spell. Her concern fell away into shock and awe as she watched Siesta engage. The valkyrie charged towards her, its spear thrusting for her leg. She brought the flat of Derflinger down and parried the thrust to her side, stepping aside to let the Valkyrie charge past. Whirling, her skirt flaring out with the movement, she lunged forward and drove Derflinger's point into a gap at the bottom of the valkyrie's helmet. A quick levering of the blade, and the helmet almost seemed to pop off, the entire construct collapsing.

She turned to look back at Louise, an equal look of awe on her own face for a moment before her eyes went wide and she started sprinting towards her. "Louise, behind you!"

A moment of panic drove her to simply dive forward, even as she felt the wind of something sailing past where her head had just been. She landed on her stomach and quickly rolled to the side, the valkyrie's boot quickly coming down where she had been laying. Her eyes locked on to the ruined remains of one of its arms, the other occupied by the its heater shield. She scrambled upright and backwards, just trying to put some distance between herself and the advancing armor.

She felt a small gust of wind as Siesta hurtled past, her hair fluttering as she breathed a sigh of relief. Siesta got worryingly close to the golem, one hand leaving Derflinger to grab a hold of the edge of its heater shield. Wrenching the shield out of the way, she brought the blade down in an overhead chop, cutting into the gap between the armors neck piece and pauldron. Even as the two continued to struggle over the shield, she kept chopping, eventually splitting the armor into two halves, diagonally across the chest.

She spun around and jogged back to her original position, glancing at Louise with a worried look before they both turned to face Guiche once again. He looked to be on the verge of a mental breakdown, panting as he glared at them. Without the usual flourish, he waved his wand again, four valkyries forming, each armed with a longsword. They wasted no time in charging towards them, and Louise wasted no time, raising her wand and casting a spell, engulfing one of them in an explosion.

Three continued forward out of the cloud, closing the distance quickly as Siesta charged forward and Louise cast another spell. The explosion consumed the valkyries again, dropping the number of charging constructs to two as they came barreling towards them. Veering off to the left, she ducked under the swing of one the valkyries and drove Deflinger into a gap between the breastplate and the legs, impaling it. Lifting one boot up, she planted it against the valkyrie and shoved it off the blade and back into the other valkyrie, sending both sprawling. Following after, she brought Derflinger down, hacking into the arm and leg joints of the fallen valkyries, quickly reducing them to chunks.

Louise watched as Siesta turned from the quickly disappearing valkyries and started running towards where Guiche should be. That was too risky, what if he summoned a group right around her?! Breaking into her own run, she swung wide, keeping an eye on where Guiche likely was. A valkyrie sprung out of one of the quickly dispersing clouds, rushing towards Siesta. Throwing her arm out, she quickly cast a spell at it, following it up with another three spells to make sure it stayed down.

Her eyes shifted to follow Siesta as she continued her charge. She dove straight into the dust cloud in front of him, a shout quickly ringing out from both her and Guiche. Her heart in her throat, she started running directly towards the two of them, even as the dust cloud started to disperse. Her pace slowed as the cloud finally blew away enough for her to see, a smile slowly forming on her face at what she saw. Guiche lying flat on his back, with Siesta sat on his chest, rubbing her head.

Stepping up to them, she glanced down at the wand still in Guiche's hand. Planting her foot onto his wrist, she ground it in, drawing a low groan of pain from him as his fingers uncurled from around the wand. Bending over and snatching it up, she grinned and looked down at him again for a moment before she started laughing. "What was that Guiche? Where was all that talk about 'showing me I didn't belong at the academy with your valkyries'? Where was that talk about me not being a mage or a noble? Look at you now, beaten by the Zero and her 'fake familiar'! I won Guiche, I WON!"

Spinning around completely giddy with excitement, she threw her arms in the air, both wands still firmly and obviously in her grasp. The crowd stared at her for a few moments, completely in shock before Zerbst started clapping. She smiled wide and brought her hands to her mouth, shouting before starting to clap again. "WOOHOO! I was expecting a good show, and you gave me one Louise! How'd that feel Guiche!? WOOHOO!"

Siesta blinked and looked up at Louise, still holding her head with one hand. She smiled, shifting her hand from her head to her mouth to stifle a giggle. It broke free all the same and she stood up, giggling to herself as she slid Derflinger back into his scabbard. Leaving Guiche lying on the ground and grabbing his wrist, she walked over to Louise, still giggling. Shoving her wand into one of her stockings and tossing Guiche his, Louise grabbed her hands and started spinning. Laughing now, Siesta started spinning with her, the two caught up in the rush of victory.

A few of Guiche's friends started moving over to help him, leaving the two victors to celebrate as they helped get him up. They just kept going around and around in circles, Louise laughing and looking up at the sky. This was a turning point, she just knew it. Guiche represented all the naysayers who doubted her abilities and wanted her gone. She hadn't backed down, and they beat him. They had won, and there was no denying it with all the witnesses.

The two stopped, panting as they grinned at each other. After a few moments, Louise pulled Siesta into a hug, her head coming to rest against her collar bone. She missed Siesta's light blush, even as she returned the hug. Louise couldn't even bring herself to be bothered by the fact they both were sweaty and covered in dirt and grime. It lasted a few moments before she pulled away, holding her at arms length while still grinning. "You saved me back there. You took on multiple valkyries back to back, and won. You aren't even breathing hard… You're gonna have to tell me when and how you managed to get so awesome!"

Blinking and rubbing the back of her neck, Siesta glanced at the group helping Guiche nearby. She opened her mouth to speak when a growling sound cut her off. Louise face grew red as Siesta looked around for the source, a hand going to her stomach. Noticing the source, she couldn't help but start giggling as Louise grumbled. "D-Don't laugh, Guiche interrupted our lunch! Let's just get back on the road, we can talk once we're back in private."

She turned and started walking back to where Siesta had tied up their horse, a smile quickly making its way back onto her face despite the occasional giggle that escaped Siesta as she followed. Things were looking on the up and up for the two of them, even if her magic hadn't progressed any. She had her friend as a strong, beautiful familiar. Maybe something crazy would happen, and it'd turn out she was also somehow holy, meeting all three criteria? A small giggle escaped her lips at the ridiculousness of the thought, even as they remounted their horse and started riding off towards the academy.

* * *

And thus, the longest fight scene I have ever made is done. I hope it's not too awful to read, I'm still trying to get the hang of action. I'm overall happy with the actual set up of the fight, as I am trying to alternate a bit between 'Louise does something for Siesta, Siesta does something for Louise'. I don't want either of them to feel like a damsel in distress, especially now that Siesta has Derflinger and is actually capable of fending for herself. I'll note that she was acting a bit braver than she normally would in my opinion, but I blame the Gandalfr runes. To respond to one comment, I'm not gonna skip either the contest or the issue with Count Mott. I've already established both in the story, and I got some good ideas for them and how they can fit in over all, instead of being just potential filler.

Thank you to everyone who has been following this by the way, I know there's a lot better stories out there on this website, so thank you for taking the time to read this one.


	5. Chapter 5 - Settling In

Happily humming as the Academy entered into view, Siesta kept one arm wrapped around Louise's waist as they rode. The was other hanging by her side while it held the now empty basket. The smile she got after they had won the duel had never left. It almost didn't seem real, like she'd wake up in her bed at any moment and go back to her old life. She'd even pinched herself a couple different times to make sure that she was actually awake.

Tilting her head back to stare at the sky above her, she couldn't fight the giggle that swelled up in her throat. So much had happened in the last two days, it really was hard to believe Between Count Mott, the familiar summoning, getting new clothes along with Derflinger, and the duel and subsequent defeat of Guiche, she couldn't remember a time so much had happened in so little time. Even one of the events would have been the most interesting thing to happen her in that month, so having so many in so little time was almost overwhelming. It went down, then up, then back down, then it shot back up! The giddy feeling still was settled in her chest, along with a new sense of self respect.

A saying sprung to her mind that seemed to fit the situation, 'the clothes make the man'. She may not be a man, but it still definitely applied with how she was feeling. She felt for lack of a better term, dashing, especially after the duel. It had really sunk in earlier that being Louise familiar meant more than being a maid, but now she felt like she was actually capable of her duties. No longer was she just a simple maid, now she was Siesta de Tarbes, swordswoman and familiar to Louise de Valliere!

She brought her head back into its resting position and glanced down at her left hand, eyeing where the familiar runes were. She had felt something from them when she had drawn Derflinger, the best she could describe it as a sort of tingling. The moment of sheer panic and desperation she felt as she saw the valkyrie rushing a defenseless Louise came back to her. Her hand went to Derflinger and drew him without a real plan, but then her body seemed to move on its own. She remembered her arms swinging out, the blade connecting with the golem, and then tearing through it as if she had taken a knife to a block of cheese.

While the runes had tingled, she had managed to do the impossible. Those golems had moved faster than any normal man could have, and somehow she was faster than them. They were definitely stronger than anyone she had known, and yet she somehow managed to out muscle them. She had never wielded a blade in her life, but every swing was perfect, every movement as natural to her as the last. Even though she should have been shaking in her boots from fear, she couldn't remember even trembling once after the fight had started. It was almost as if she had been someone else entirely once she had joined the fight.

The only explanation she could think of was that it had something to do with Derflinger. Even if it didn't, he definitely had to know something, he had been way too quiet all the way back to town. That might have to do with all the other students that weren't too far behind them though. She really hoped he had some form of explanation, as she knew Louise was waiting for one. After finishing off the last of the lunch they had packed, she had fallen into her own thoughtful silence, probably trying to puzzle out how it all had happened on her own.

Her eyes left her hand as they started the final stretch to the Academy's stables, a stable hand already coming out to meet the two of them. Louise let him take the reigns, holding the animal still while Siesta dismounted. Offering her a hand, she helped her dismount with a smile. The stable hand took the horse away and the two started to head towards their room, passing under the entrance arch. Her gaze wandered around the courtyard, eventually settling in on the door to the dining hall. Still closed, meaning they hadn't missed dinner. After everything that happened today she definitely could do with a bath, and a good meal.

* * *

Pouring the tea out into their cups, Siesta sat the kettle back onto the tray and sat down, glancing at the tea cup before her. She had found it odd when Louise insisted on her bringing two cups along, but apparently she was going to actually be drinking tea with her from now on. There wasn't going to be any complaint, since the thought of getting to sit down and enjoy a drink with her friend was delightful. The only issue was that she really hadn't had much tea before, so she was going to have to figure out how much milk or honey she prefered to have in hers.

She took a small sip and immediately regretted it, completely straight tea was definitely not something she'd enjoy. Her face scrunched up a bit and Louise giggled from her spot across from her. Blushing lightly in embarrassment, she added four teaspoons of milk and two of honey to her tea, copying Louise's usual. After quickly stirring it, she brought it to her lips to sip at it again. A small hum of appreciation came from her throat and she nodded to herself, taking a longer drink from the cup before returning it to its saucer.

"Alright… Siesta, when did you learn to fight like that? Did you secretly get trained by the Royal Guard at some point in your life and not tell me?" She looked up at Louise and blinked, feeling her nerves starting to rise. She still hadn't exactly figured out an accurate way to describe what happened back there, so this was going to be difficult.

"N-No Louise, I have never been trained by the Royal Guard. I've never even picked up a sword before today." She fidgeted a bit and brought her left hand up, taking the glove off so that she could show the runes. "I honestly was just acting out of panic when I saw that valkyrie taking advantage of your fall. As soon as I put my hand on Derflinger though, I got this tingly feeling in my hand. It happened when we bought him, but I just thought that it was due to him being magic. After that fight though, I've noticed it being well… the runes. The runes tingled, and I got a boost I guess. My body just kind of moved on instinct after that. I'd get a feeling on how to swing, or move, and I followed it. I can't explain it any better than that…"

"Hm… Put your hand on Derflinger again. Let's see if there's any visible change to the runes." Louise watched while she reached over and picked up him up from where he was leaning against the table, laying her hand onto his hilt. A gasp escaped her mouth and Louise quirked an eyebrow as the runes started to glow a ghostly white. She let go and watched as the glow vanished, repeating the process a couple more times just to make sure… well she wasn't quite sure. "Well, that confirms it being something about your runes… It can't be the rituals way of making up for your lack of ability in protecting me, as it doesn't do anything of the sort for the smaller familiars… I researched a lot in preparation for the ritual, and looked at every arrangement of runes, but now that I'm actually looking at them, I've never seen this arrangement before… I'll have to check in the library again."

Sliding him slightly out of his scabbard, she gave Derflinger a suspicious look while Louise sat rubbing her chin and staring at the ground. He had been quiet ever since the fight, and she couldn't figure out why. Either he was actually causing this, or he had to know something. "Mister Derflinger, you've been very quiet ever since the duel. Do you know something about all of this, or are you trying to puzzle it out yourself? Mister Derflinger? Mister Deeeeerflinger?"

It took whacking the table a few times to get him to respond, and his irritated shout startled the both of them. "Can't a sword try to remember something without everyone asking him questions? I'm pretty sure I know something about those runes, but I can't remember exactly what that is. Six thousand years will leave a lot of things fuzzy. I'm fairly certain the first person who wielded me was the same as you, but what you two 'are' isn't coming to me. So be a nice girl and don't interrupt me when I'm trying to actually remember what that is!"

The two stared at him for a few moments, before Siesta set him back where he was with a quiet apology. Looking at Louise from across the table, she could see the curiosity lighting up in her eyes. She could feel her own starting to bubble up as well, alongside a small dose of relief. This wasn't some new thing that was entirely unique to her, there had been others like her in the past. They just had to figure out who those people were, and they'd know what's going on… probably.

A silence fell over the room, Louise falling into her thoughts as Siesta watched her. She sipped her tea, taking notice of how her young master scowled lightly while staring at the table. A small hum passed through her lips, a random thought coming to her in that moment. "Um… Louise? It's entirely unrelated but I just thought of something."

She looked up at her and made a 'go on' motion with her hand, an eyebrow quirked. Siesta glanced back at Derflinger for a moment before continuing. "I was just wondering, if learning more about magic would help me… protect you. I really had no idea what to expect from Guiche. What if we… I don't know, run into a bandit noble or something? I just think it might help me be prepared in case of anything unexpected?"

The thoughtful and slightly worried look fell back over Louise's face as she nodded along, glancing over to Derflinger as well. Putting one hand on top of her other and giving it a small squeeze, she held her breath slightly as Louise started to respond. "As much as I don't like the idea of you fighting any nobles… well, ever. I can see your point… It is better to be safe, than sorry. How about I give you a brief overview of magic tonight, and you can accompany me to the library tomorrow. We'll grab some books on the subject while I go looking for more information on familiars."

She breathed a sigh of relief and smiled at Louise, nodding along with her plan. For some reason, the idea of not being able to defend Louise properly had her more scared than the thought of actually having to defend her. The two quickly fell into what amounted into a lecture on the barest bones of magic, how it worked, and its systems. Even as they talked, they never noticed the small feeling that should of tipped them off… that they were being watched.

* * *

"This is a worrying development, Osmond." Colbert sighed as the ancient white haired headmaster waved a hand across the crystal ball. The scrying of Louise and Siesta talking vanished, leaving nothing but the perfectly smooth transparent orb. "I had hoped when I had discovered the runes that it was just a mistake on my part, but apparently those hopes have been shattered. Louise has to be a Void Mage, and Siesta has to be the Gandalfr, there is no other explanation for this."

Letting a sigh escape his lips, Osmond rubbed his head with a hand. Moving over to the window, the academy grounds were quickly growing dark as the sun setted. "As much as I hate to admit it Jean, you are right. Louise's inability to cast spells, the summoning of a human, said human's sudden fighting ability, they even managed to get their hands on Derflinger, which I am surprised is still even in existence after so long."

Nodding along, Colbert moved over towards the window and looked out alongside him. "What do you suggest we do? There is very little chance of either of them figuring it out on their own. I have the book safe in my office, and there is no other source of this information anywhere else in the academy. My suggestion would be to simply tell them. The legends say that Void Mage only appears in times of great strife. With Albion about to completely fall to the Reconquista, said times are upon us."

A moment passed as Osmund thought on what was said, before he shook his head and turned to face Colbert. "They are going to have to find out at some point, but I imagine us bluntly telling them will leave them lost. Our best bet would be to allow them to figure it out on their own, give them time to adjust to the idea. I can leave the specifics of it up to you?"

A quick nod was the only response he got as Colbert turned and moved to leave the office. Opening the door to find a green haired woman coming towards him with a stack of papers. Holding the door open, a slight inclination of the head was exchanged as she passed by him. "Evening, Miss Longueville."

Letting the door fall shut, the professor rapidly set out to his office. A plan was already forming in his mind as to how the book would wind up in their hands.

* * *

Slipping in through the doors of the library, Louise and Siesta moved further in. Looking up at the shelves rising right up to the rafters, Siesta couldn't help but feel slightly intimidated. Most of the bookstores common folk could afford going to likely didn't even contain a tenth of what was in this room. Each shelf was labeled with their specific subject, ranging from "Biology" to "Pyromancy". The maids came into the room to clean, but none of the staff were allowed to check out anything.

As the two walked between the vast shelves, she could feel eyes turn to look at them. Gossip traveled fast, and almost the entire school had heard about the duel. Guiche had been sullen, leveling a few choice glares at whenever he thought they weren't looking. He couldn't meet their eye if either of them decided to return the glare, though hers always managed to come out looking more like a pout. The attitude seemed to extend to that friend group, as they all went out of their way to avoid to avoid them.

With them being quiet, it wasn't difficult to figure out that the story got out thanks to Miss Zerbst. The germanian didn't even try to hide it, having been in the process of telling the story when they walked into Alviss Hall for breakfast. An embellished version that made it sound like Guiche never even had a chance. The worry of the students and the respect of the faculty the story brought wasn't the issue. The issue was that a rumor was spreading that they were in some kind of secret relationship at the same time! It was stupid, the only reason it was even a thing was because Miss Zerbst thought they were 'cute together'.

Her eyes shifted from the shelves to look at Louise, noticing the slight tightening of her jaw and flexing of her fingers. The two of them had been getting anything between minute glances to full blown stares all day, and it was nerve-wracking. Yesterday had so much happening that there hadn't been any chance to really notice, but now that things had settled down, she couldn't help but tense up and fidget under their gaze. It was impossible to tell if the staring was because of interest in the duel, or judging them based on the rumor.

Stopping in front of the cabinets that held the reference cards, Louise opened one and started to search through them. Still feeling the eyes on her back, she slipped away towards the smaller "Fiction" shelf. A small sigh of relief escaped as their line of sight was broken, leaving her the freedom to think and browse the selection. Nothing grabbed demanded any attention though, as almost the entire shelf was dedicated to myths, legends, and fairy tales.

Only half paying attention the books, her thoughts turned to thinking over the silly rumor of romance. It really made no sense. Neither of them had ever shown any kind of interest for each other in that way. They were friends, and put a lot of trust in that friendship. It wasn't like she was some handsome swashbuckler, swinging in from the rafters to snatch Louise from a loveless arranged marriage. Though the outfit did look a lot like a swashbuckler… and she did sweep in at the last moment during that duel to save her…

Her eyes widened as the realization came. It almost entirely resembled a scene from "Albion Accolades"! The moment back in the courtyard, where she had spoken up to defend Louise honor, and then in turn was protected by Louise, was close to a chapter in "Demons and Demands". Even if they hadn't been meaning to, the two of them had been and still were giving off the idea of being in a relationship pretty strongly. Maybe they should take some actions to stop the rumor...

As quickly as the thought of putting some distance between herself and Louise came, the guilt and sadness that followed was even faster. There was no regret for anything she had done, even if it had been terrifying in the moment. Louise was a good person, and a great noble, someone to be proud of serving. Someone as kind as her didn't deserve to be alone, didn't deserve to be mocked and shunned by her peers. She deserved a friend.

Slipping off the titles, her eyes found themselves watching Louise as she sorted through a different cabinet. She could make out small bits of her face past her long pink tresses. Her young master's lips had slid down at the corners into the usual frown of annoyance. Her eyebrows were scrunched low in concentration as her fingers shifted the cards for her to read each one. A silent sigh slipped past her own lips. She was pretty, but that smile of excitement and joy after winning the duel made her look even better. It made her want to just pick her up and squeeze her tight.

A small cough brought reality back, and with it came a blush as the realization she had been staring. Whirling around, the nervousness slightly abated as it turned out to only be Professor Colbert, giving her a slightly amused look. He was holding a small bundle of books under one arm. A small chuckle escaped as he rubbed his chin, looking at her as she tried to calm down. "Siesta, what brings you and Miss Valliere to the library? Gathering some materials for one of her assignments?"

A small glance over her shoulder let her see that Louise hadn't noticed her talking to Colbert. Feeling glad that Colbert had chosen to ignore the obvious, she offered a small smile. "No, Miss Valliere and I thought it'd make some sense for me to know a bit about magic, so she's gonna grab me some books about it. How it works in combat, mainly. It's kind of a scary thought, but being unprepared seems even scarier. She's also grabbing some books on familiars. She wants to try and figure out what my runes mean."

A small, subtle nod was all she got in return. The look of amusement never left his face though, even as he grabbed one of the books he was carrying and offered it out to her. "In that case, perhaps this may help her in her goal. I grabbed a couple different books from this section for a personal project, but did not have much luck with any of them."

Taking the book, a glance at the cover told her the title, "Rare and Mysterious Familiar Runes Throughout the Ages". Looking back up, Professor Colbert was already moving to slip the books he had back into their correct places. Offering a quiet "Thank you", she turned around and moved back over to stand besides Louise, a small smile covering her face. Things might be settling down, but they were settling down in a way she liked. Now she just had to get Louise to smile more...

* * *

OKAY, this is finally out. I know this has taken a while to come out, and I can't really give a proper excuse. I got caught up in some school related things, working one some other projects (primarily DnD related ones), and a small bit of writer's block here and there.

Moving on from the apologizing, I'm gonna address some people.

 **xbox432** : To be quite honest, I'm not nearly as familiar in the later seasons than in the beginning. I just sat and thought about how she'd likely act if A) She wasn't nearly as upset about the familiar she got as she was with Saito and B) Said familiar was actively trying to be as polite, and as nice as possible. Since Siesta and her were acquaintances before the summoning, it wouldn't really make sense for her to treat her like an animal.

My reasoning for Louise not targeting Guiche with any of her spells was tied to her inexperience, but not in the way you were thinking. She just never thought of it, the constant pressure of valkyries kept her from actually thinking of it. For Kirche, you hit the nail on the head. I don't see her as much cruel as someone who just enjoys teasing. For example, if instead of getting angry and responding, Louise curled up into a ball to cry, I could see her very quickly changing the way she interacts with her.

I also just wanna thank **DschingKhan** for giving me some good writing advice. I've tried implementing it a bit into this chapter, but finding spots where it felt right were difficult. It'll probably come in time though.

A question for people reading this though. Do you all think I correctly show character voice? Do Louise and Siesta for example, tend to wind up sounding the same when they have dialogue? I was reading some stuff when I finally got a concrete example of someone not doing character voice right, and it's made me a bit paranoid.


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